Olivia Wilde Slams Claims That She ‘Abandoned’ Her Children
Olivia Wilde is slamming accusations made by people who say she has “abandoned” her children whenever she is photographed without them. Wilde, 38, told Elle magazine in the November cover issue published Thursday (October 12), “I share custody of my kids with my ex. If I’m photographed not with my kids, people assume I have abandoned them, like my kids are just somewhere in a hot car without me. The suggestion is that I have abandoned my role as a mother.”
Wilde told the publication that she consciously makes it a point to not have her children photographed. “You know why you don’t see me with my kids? Because I don’t let them get photographed,” she further explained. “Do you know the lengths that I go to protect my kids from being seen by you?”
The Don’t Worry Darling director and her ex- Jason Sudeikis share children Otis, 8, and Daisy Josephine, 6. This isn’t the first time Wilde has voiced her frustration with people criticizing her parenting. The actress and director told Variety in a recent interview that there is a double standard. “When people see me not with my kids, it’s always ‘How dare she.’ I’ve never seen anyone say that about a guy. And if he is with his kid, he’s a f—ing hero.”
Since her breakup with Sudeikis — and since she started dating Harry Styles — Wilde has felt her privacy violated. “The last two years, my family has gone through this kind of restructuring and a revolution that should be a totally personal experience,” Wilde told Variety. “And it’s not. The most painful element of it has been women shaming me for making a decision that was for my own health and happiness.”
Wilde even took off a significant amount of time from working in order to be present with her children. “It was time for me to pause and devote myself to the kids when I have them,” she explained. “This year was a time for me to be a stay-at-home mom. It was not the year for me to be on a set, which is totally all-encompassing.”